talks about their operations. at 9:15 minutes john heimlich talks about airline fees after the shows they made billions of dollars after instituting these fees. ♪ guest: on cent -- host: on sundays we like to talk about politics. it is a busy political weekend. the iowa caucuses, only six and a half months away. with that in mind, we would like to hear from you. who is your presidential candidate? what is your enthusiasm level for the candid it?

202 is the area code. 624-111 for democrats. please allow 30 days between your calls. you could also send us a tweet. or you could just do @cspanwj. for the first 45 minutes, who is your presidential candidate? what is your enthusiasm level? a lot of you probably saw or heard about the president obama impersonator who was entertaining at the republican leadership conference in new orleans. here is the headline from politico. a comedian impersonating obama made it racial jokes at the conference before being pulled off the stage by any event

organizer. here are a couple of those jokes. >> my favorite month is february. black history month. i celebrate half a month. [laughter] [applause] look at this. i love this boat. we are ready to take on the world. i had my team of experts use technology to predict what michele and i will look like at the end of my first term. [laughter] [laughter] >> if you watched the whole event, you could hear the audience laughing. it was about four or five minutes later after some other jokes when he started insulting the republican candidates.

he was about to tell and michelle bachmann joke when he got pulled off the stage. you concede the whole video on our web site. the front page of the new york times, this photo of the gulf summit. president obama and john boehner playing golf at andrews air force base. right below that is this story for gay marriage of views evolves. barack obama during the senate race of 2004. kevin thompson found himself tutoring the candidate on gay- rights. mr. thompson recalled conversations about topics like the 1969 stonewall rebellion that sparked the gay-rights movement, gay adoption, mr.

thompson recalled and same-sex marriage was mr. obama has opposed. mr. thompson is skeptical about that. to this day, i do not think barack obama has any issue with two people of the same chair dree -- gender getting married. dree -- gender getting married. he is seeking support from gay donors who want to know where he stands. he is doing so at a time when the legislature is considering whether to make same-sex marriage legal. a vote the president will be asked about while in new york. the white house would not comment if he was ready to endorse same-sex marriage.

that is in the "new york times" this morning. who is your canada? we start to mississippi with larry on the democrat line. caller: i will be voting again for president obama. i am enthused about him staying for four more years. two democrats would like to speak about. perry and tim pawlenty. these people are not telling the truth in minnesota. the media has not done a good job. rick perry, i just saw him.

the media is not expect plaining this to america. -- explaining this to america. nobody is calling him on it. thank you, have a nice day. host: perry weighs prospects for a presence until bid. the texas governor exploring the possibility of a bit in -- bid. his speech to an annual gathering of republican party faithful was overshadowed by the performance of an impersonator who was pulled off the stage after delivering a strings of recently tinge jokes. rick perry spoke to minutes after the impersonator. here is a little bit of that. >> we have the so-called leaders to ramrod on rad -- unread

health care legislation without admitting it will make the government the sole arbitrator of health care. instead, we have the so-called leaders who would rather pour bailout money on companies that are too big to fail then make the changes that would free up small businesses to create real jobs and real wealth. instead, we have this entitlement culture in our nation that dictates government spending based on what bureaucrats think they deserve rather than what the people can afford. host: the next call comes from nashville, tennessee. caller: >> i am an independent. i am 16 years old. i have seen republicans have done. i am traumatized.

i'm going to support barack obama this upcoming election because my family has full support behind him. host: what are you traumatized by? what have the republicans done? caller: the only president i remember is george w. bush. in past years, they have not been great. my mother is unemployed. it is hard to see that. it is not right. host: tom is a republican in florida. who's your candidate? caller: my enthusiasm level would be very high for barack obama if he can come up with a

credible and believable plan for the nation's budget to set this country on a path of economic expansion. we need to get off this election stuff. we need to do what is right for this nation. that is the most important thing for us to do. we need to do it now. as a republican, i would like to say, it does not matter who the president is. we need to read-learn that. let's get this thing done. let's put this path -- our nation on a path of success. host: any republicans your enthused about? caller: the conversation is self-destructive. honestly. we need to talk about is what is best for america. host: from dirk, paul,

santorum, all good canada's. mccain = romney, and spend. -- huntsman. leaving taxes and entitlement programs to address as members of congress head toward an early summer focused on budget and- issues, joe biden leads lawmakers and hopes to have the rough outline of a debt reduction deal before july 1.

joe is a democrat in florida. who is your candidate? caller: my enthusiasm is pretty low. i did vote for barack obama but i am tired of the blame game. blaming the past administration. take responsibility right now and say what you're going to do. i am tired of blaming bush. most americans are. the only person who stood out about the problems has been donald trump as far as what is going on with china and our money. nobody talks about it. nobody talked about anything rather than playing barack obama. the blame game has got to stop. the american people are getting sick and tired of these people in congress and people running for president. it is getting to be a blame game. host: jonathan is a republican in georgia.

towhead, jonathan. are you with us? are you with us? we're going to move into north carolina. caller: good morning. i am going to vote for barack obama because i am tired of the republicans. i have heard them life for 60 years. that is said. have a good day. host: did you vote for obama four years ago? caller: >> i most certainly did. host: what are you retired from? i am disabled. host: thank you for calling in. ed is in baltimore. caller: good morning. i would safely say that if you

want to vote for four more years of economic misery, go right ahead. you're out of your mind. there is no other explanation. i like herman cain although he is little non. my second would be michele bachmann. those are the candidates that inspire me the most. they're some of the most principled. i was impressed that tim pawlenty presented a serious budget plan. it was actually very in-depth and covered a lot of ground. host: they had a straw poll at the republican conference meeting in new orleans yesterday. here are the results. ron paul one was 612 votes.

john heinz and came in second place. michele backmann, ms. romney, who leads, 74 votes. newt gingrich 74. rick santorum 30. tim pawlenty 18. gary johnson 10. "perry would be like bush 45." kathy, a democrat. caller: good morning. i am? recalling to register a complaint. i watched c-span all the time. i like the congressional hearing. it seems like lately, every month, the republicans are having some kind of a convention somewhere. you guys play it and play again

and again all weekend long. that is all that is on. i do not understand why it has to be repeated so many times. i am tired of listening to these people. there is nothing else on to counteract them. i do not think it is fair. host: texas on a republican line. caller: i don't like either party. ron paul would be the only one who could help us. for republicans, i would go with john huntsman. caller: karl on our florida line. caller: 100% enthusiasm for rick perry. they have a surplus and a balanced budget. they have created more than 45% of the new jobs for the whole

nation. that is what we need. a leader like that. host: john steinbeck according to this twitter page, rick perry. voter accountability, immigration control in job incentives. no wonder liberals hate him. reid ? obama on libya action. harry reid backs president obama that military action does not need congressional authorization. his opinion differs with that of the senate majority who believes that obama needs authorization under the war powers act to continue operations. "it has no application to what is going on in libya."

rick in california. good morning. caller: i think barack obama has made some decisions on his on. he should make his own decisions without anybody else. any decisions he does make, i feel they are fair to his own self as president of the united states. without anybody else. then let's decide what happens. give him a chance. give him a second chance. let's see what things get done. can be no worse than what it is. have a good day. host: matthew, san antonio, republican. who is your candid it? -- candidate. caller: i think rick perry has then a tremendous job in texas.

i think he has a good plan of how to get americans out of the downfall we are in. host: florida, frank on our feet independent line. caller: good morning. i am an independent voter. i do not like politicians in either party. i would vote for anyone who ran for the presidency and said four things -- i will stop all nation voting. i will ban all money to congress. i will bring back 10,000 troops where they are not needed and stationed them along our border. that would and all illegal amid -- immigration. fourth, i would try out the tax

lawbook and institute a fair and flat tax to make sure everybody pays the same. i will go out and campaign for them. host: this article from "the wall street journal." the justice department is expected to oust the head of the bureau of dhaka all tobacco and firearms according to people of -- familiar with the matter amid a federal anti trafficking operation that has grown into the biggest scandal in nearly two decades. it moves for the replacement of the acting director since april 2009. it could begin next week although the precise sequence remains to be decided. it shows the extent of the political damage caused by the gun trafficking operation called fast and furious which use tactics to laos might wish to buy firearms. controversial over the program

has paralyzed a log agency buffeted by partisan battle. it has been without a senate confirmed director since 2006. they cannot win approval of a nominee. silver springs, md., john, a democrat. you are on the air. caller: i am a democrat and i do not like any of the republican candidates. it is like a comedy of errors. all they do is point fingers as to what is going bad. host: who is your candidate? a reminder to turn down the volume on your tv. otherwise it gets a little confusing. can is a republican in salt lake city. caller: my candid it is met

romney. host: what is your enthusiasm level? caller: it is pretty pumped up. with 2012 coming along, i think he will be able to lead us in the right direction. host: cleveland, ohio. caller: my candidate is a wreck perry. -- rick perry. i believe people should give a chance to obama. he is trying to fix what is going on here in the united states and what other people have messed up for us. i think the people the united states should give president obama a chance for the nation. host: why did you say rick perry?

caller: he is a very good candidate for his state. he is for everybody. that is everybody in the republican party. it's just that the people in the united states and do not know how to stand and give everyone a chance. caller: palm springs. there is going to be a third party running a candidate for 2012 at of texas. i think they're going to run under the name of the freedom party. they have not elected a candidate yet. it is an alternative to the republicans and democrats. neither one of these groups serve the purpose of this country. that is the bottom line.

they both have a shot at a. they have been a part of where we are in the situation we are in today. we need an alternative. that is the bottom line. we need somebody who was about the constitution and the belief that the founding fathers put together for this country in the first place. i do not see that in either one of these boys we have running today. it is back and forth. it is the same thing. the democrats take your money. the republicans take your rights. that is all i have to say. host: one of our twitter followers agrees with you. the problem is the two parties. here are the results from the wall street journal online poll. and nbc-wall street pulled. looking at the iowa caucus which is coming up in january.

mitt romney currently leads with 25% followed by new gingrich and sarah palin. ron pollack 15%. tim pawlenty comment &. over in new hampshire, mitt romney currently has a pretty large a lead in that poll followed by ron paul, newt gingrich, rudy guiliani and tim pawlenty. this article, obama to end waiver approval. they announced on friday it is changing the way it approves waivers to part of the health care reform law.

south pointe, ohio. our independent line. caller: right now i am just listening to the candidates. i believe herman cain might be the one i am interested in. i heard a fellow talking about texas and our economy doing so well. it seems like they took lyndon johnson and 10 years of vietnam and now the bush boys and 10 years of iraq. i guess from what i hear they're a lot of people from texas over there. i've come to the conclusion i like folks from texas. they seem like good folks. there ought to be a lot from people from texas running for president. especially bushes and lyndon johnson. thank you very much. host: fredericksburg, virginia.

maxwell on our democrat line. caller: barack obama is my candidate. just like the guy just said, people do not realize rick perry took the money but is not going to say he took the money. barack obama is my candidate. i am very enthusiastic about barack obama. people do not realize, the stuff that he put through. we would be better off but the party of "no" kill that. host: who do you like today? caller: rick perry. i am a christian voters. he is going to stand up for what is right. i cannot vote for barack obama

because of his stand on abortion. abortion is premeditated murder. people voting for him are voting for premeditated murder. rick perry, he stands up for god. american can do the same thing if we stand up for god and turn away from abortion and gay marriage. this nation will turn around. god owns you me and everybody. he owns us. he can turn this nation around. i appreciate you taking my call. host: from the hill, obama reelection campaign takes over twitter and facebook. it will be run by staff by his reelection campaign. they announced friday that the president will post regularly. "why make the change?

as the president said, he is focused on doing the job we elected him to do. he is counting on all of us to leave this organization from the grassroots up helping to shape it as it grows." maryland. democrat. you are on "washington journal." caller: president obama for sure. my enthusiasm level is high. he is doing a good job. the republicans are not interested in helping the company. they want to get elected and in power. host: edwin. you are on the air. caller: am i on the air? i wanted to express my backing for mitt romney. i think he is experienced. he is from massachusetts. he did a great job there.

i am -- i want someone with experience. the problem with barack obama is that he went into the white house and he really had no idea how this country should be run. host: another tweet. perry, bachmann. baltimore. vote for'm going to barack obama. but i am not highly enthusiastic about him. i am more enthusiastic about making sure that republicans do not get the presidency. they will destroy this country with their financial agenda which will turn everything to the bridge. they're thinking about putting

so security into the stock market. that is insanity. obama has shown me some good things about him. he stood up to israel. we need more politicians to do that. we cannot lend this -- let them decide our foreign policy. host: carmen is on the line. caller: nauvoo. barack obama. i am very enthusiastic. i am so angry that people do not remember what it was like in 2009 when he took office and the republicans were ready to let to the ottawa industry go under. if we had left it up to the republicans, america would have no auto industry. that is not just affect the automakers. it would affect the parts people and the people who sell the cars.

i just cannot believe that people forget how bad it was and how much obama has saved us. how bad it could be if republicans would have been a dental office. host: thank you for calling in. bristol palin calls the father of her child the "gnat." she writes in the book about the night her son was conceived going into detail about getting drunk for the first time and losing her virginity on a camping trip despite swearing off sex until marriage. she writes that she drank too many wine coolers and ended up sleeping with johnston. waking up alone in her tent without any recollection of what happened. upon learning she was pregnant,

johnston was not comforting. "better be a bleeping boy," he said according to the book. bristol mentions appearing with him on stage during her mother's vice-presidential run. that somehow legitimized us as a couple. still, i relationship was not meant to be. they split after their son was born in december 2008 because johnston -- by the time the story about the gays and appeared in us weekly, they were broken up again. this time because he had gotten someone else pregnant. that is from politico this morning.

john on a republican line. rick perry is definitely my candid it. i have to take a back to the first caller saying how the media does not give him enough credit. host: turned down the volume minority v. just listen to the phone. we'll have to leave it there. sorry about that. dave, go ahead from pennsylvania. caller: it is barack obama 100%. he is doing the best he can do. we see the republicans are a party of no. they keep wanting to give the rich a pass. they will not invest.

the republicans repealed and let the robber barons takeover. they got us here. they will not release any money. rick perry took all the stimulus money and said it is no good. if people would investigate texas, my son was in the army down there. the whole state is nothing but defense money. host: thank you for calling in. south carolina, henry on our republican line. caller: i think and republican is going to be better than our present situation with barack obama. we are leaning toward mitt romney but we would vote for any of the republicans because we

know the policies that have been put in place with the democratic administration have really hurt the country. to the second part of your question. yours -- you say you're leaning toward mr. romney? are you enthusiastic? caller: our enthusiasm as for the republicans to be elected. host: n.y.. bob. independent line. caller: new york state, not new york city. i was an independent. i voted for barack obama but this time i might stay at home. i am a union member. we have been getting killed by the governors. some of them are even democrats. iraq has not helped us much.

all the sudden we are people who kill the, uh economy. not the millionaire stockbrokers. caller: are you a state worker? host: yes. host: is this a common attitude among your co-workers? caller: we are very upset because we have a governor that was endorsed by barack obama. he has made war on teachers and state workers. he has blamed us for the whole problem in our state. our state is dependent on the stock market. we of the allotted national banks in new york city. they caused this whole crisis. now they're blaming state workers and teachers. host: thank you for calling in.

"my candid it must be an ultra- conservatives." next is from nancy in virginia. caller: i am a big obama supporter. i watched the debate last week. he wanted 50% more in the agriculture bill to regulate commodities and derivatives. i sigh frontline program that featured leslie byrne at the commodities and futures exchange. this derivatives business is what brought down the bank and 2/3 of this debt was because of mr. bush and this war. i do not think my fellow democrats appreciate the difficulty that mr. obama has to go through. i think you catch more flies

with honey than vinegar. we'd better get a enthusiastic. host: libyan rebels are out of money. war're waging a drawn-out to oust gaddafi and have run out of money. he accused the west of not meeting promises to deliver urgent financial aid. the comments came as cracks were appearing in the nato alliance over its three month bombing campaign against gaddafi. right below that they list iraqi war deaths. so far, since 2003, there have been four thousand four hundred 66 fatalities. 3514 have been in hostile action. shreveport, louisiana. republican line. caller: i would have to say ron

paul. he is the only person who understands that our country, understands that our country, freedom cannot exist without -- with the central bank's controlling our country. host: a tweet, "no enthusiasm goes with the political times. no enthusiasm about anything at moment." oklahoma. an independent. caller: i would like my candid it to be rick perry that he is not a candidate yet. i think he would be a great

leader. he seems to be doing pretty well down there in texas. host: a couple of e-mail us have come in. in ancient times, an enthusiast was a person possessed by at&t, a form of insanity. if maitre runs, i will vote for him. knowing full well it is symbolic. in terms of the spirit of the question, it is hard to get excited because everything seems so fake. that is from seattle, washington. this e-mail as well. "i could care less as who will be president. we have enough rational people to support those who a hamstring the government." good morning, joe. caller: my candid it is barack

obama. it took president clinton two terms to clean the mess up that bush and reagan left. give obama another chance for another term. host: did you vote for him in 2008? caller: yes. host: thank you for calling in. brian is in salt lake. caller: mine is herman cain. he is an american. he is not a politician. you have g.e., he is in bed with the president. they don't pay no taxes. democrats have to pull their heads out. he has raised the debt ceiling, obama, four times in three years. he wants to raise it again. all that stimulus money went to his buddies.

it is a ridiculous joke. people have to wake up. common sense. quit spending money you do not have. wake up, democrats. love america. host: jill is a democrat in ohio. caller: barack obama. i am very enthusiastic. i do not think we can take another term of the republican party. i cannot believe people do not remember what happened under the last one. host: louisville, ky. the republican. your the last word. caller: mccain, but i saw rick perry. i like him even though he is not a candidate. i was impressed. we need somebody like him. he looks like a go-getter.

anybody to get this man out of office we have now. four of these people calling in and whining about obama, pointing back to bush, that does not work anymore. this next election will be about obama. he has been in there almost four years. he has failed. host: thank you to everybody who called them. as we often do, we will have a political roundtable next. we have reporters kasie hunt and carol elee. we will be looking at the news and analysis, looking ahead to what might be going on in washington. following that, a segment with a cia analyst about the new head of al qaeda. we will finish with the vice president of the air traffic association talking about airlines and some of the fees they charge.

first this update from c-span radio. >> hear about all the news today beginning at noon on c-span radio when we read error the five network tv talk shows. topics include presidential politics, the economy, and the middle east. we begin with nbc's meet the press. we welcome dick durbin and ms. gramm. also, the last angeles mayor. at 1:00, it is this week with senator john mccain. he is a ranking republican member. also, the ambassador to the u.s. from pakistan. fox sunday rears said to p.m. chris wallace talks with robert gates and the host of the daily show, john stuart. show, john stuart. -- jon stewart. and then the senior strategist

for the obama reelection campaign. at 4:00 p.m., it is face the nation from cbs. we talk with mitch mcconnell and chuck schumer and mike rogers. the five network tv talk shows are brought to as a public- service by the networks and c- span. they begin at noon eastern with meet the press, 1:00 with this week, 2:00 p.m., fox news sunday, 3:00 state of the union and face the nation from cbs. listen to them on c-span radio. nationwide on xm satellite radio. now you can listen on your blackberry. >> the time ordered the world when i was growing up. >> andrew rossi takes an inside look at the "new york times."

>> i came into a without a sense of what the solutions are for traditional media. i came in with a desire to observe. >> he will talk about his new documentary tonight on q&a. c-span has launched a new website for politics and the 2012 presidential race. with information on the candidates, twitter feeds and facebook updates. and the links to c-span media partners in the early primary states. visit us at c-span.org. >> "washington journal" continues. host: over here on the right is the national political reporter with politico.

and the white house reporter. let's start with the baby important news of the weekend, the golf summit. any substance to that? guest: it was really more about the speaker and the president forming a bit of a relationship as they try to do business. most immediately the debt ceiling vote and the deficit reduction that the vice president has talked about. it was an interesting moment because barack obama is not someone who mixes business and pleasure, particularly on the weekend. this is something he has not done with any member of congress. there's a lot of intrigue from the press corps to see him and the speaker kicking back and having a couple drinks afterward.

both of them had a good time. they won a bet. there was another funny thing they did which, we were wondering if they released to the score. they fixed this of the speaker and the president played together so they came away winners. host: is there any significance to this get together? guest: it depends if they do it again. if it becomes a regular kind of thing. just in terms of doing business and building relationships, even reporters do this. it is better to know somebody on a personal level. it helps when they're sitting across the table hashing out some tough issues. host: have you been covering the republican leadership conference? what is the significance of that? host: it culminated with the

straw poll that we had. ron paul seems to win them regularly. former utah governor john husband came in second -- jon huntsman came in second. he goes on things like civil unions. he supports cabinetry, climate change, he has had to explain some of those away. you would not think he would play so well with a conservative audience in the south. host: did he send an operation? guest: he canceled at the last minute on friday. his wife was there instead and two of his daughters. she did not give a formal address. they were definitely present. host: in the first 45 minutes we're asking viewers about their

enthusiasm levels for their candidates. our viewers called in with a high enthusiasm level but overall all the polls shows that they are pretty low for the republican field. guest: it is something that is easy to get caught up because we're so anxious for the campaign to start. it is very slow to get started. if you think about this point last time around with obama and hillary clinton already running aggressively. john mccain was well on its way to falling apart for the first time before getting it back together. now we have that first debate in new hampshire. even still, mitt romney says he is not willing to campaign until labor day. whatever excitement is going to be there has not gone to the point where it is significant.

host: how aunt up is the president 's campaign? guest: it is interesting how the field is taking shape. that has helped the white house. as the president runs, they're trying not to appear as politicized. that he is on the job and working and being president. he said he will not campaign until 2012. it would like to stick to that. to the extent that republicans are not hitting the trail in coming after him in a real way, him putting it off does not hurt him as much. right now the campaign is fund- raising in trying to get a grass-roots network. the president has been hitting the fund-raising trail but not so much the campaign trail.

host: will there be any long- term result because of the meeting he held with fund- raisers in the white house? guest: the white house brushed it off as something they do not see any problem with that. it was not a fundraiser. he was not soliciting donations. the white house press secretary said that the president meets with all sorts of different people. certainly a raise some eyebrows among observers of the president who has not necessarily engaged in the same kinds of ways that past presidents have in terms of opening up the white house to various donors. he does that with all eight parties and different events and state dinners. but in this particular instance, it raised eyebrows.

host: the chief of staff had a meeting with a round table last week. give us a snapshot of that meeting and the result. guest: he met with the manufacturers' association. it was interesting because they expressed some discontent with the present's policies and said they were hurting businesses. daley was amenable to that. it is something that is a problem for this white house. he suggested they would do some different things to make changes. changes. host: national political reporter, to 02 is the area code.

a political roundtable news of the week discussion. one more question, i will ask you both, what was the biggest news of last week? guest: way to put me on the spot. there's a lot i want to comment on. on. host: i really did put you on the spot. to get a chance to think? guest: for the white house, the golf summit. and libya. it was interesting to see john boehner launch an aggressive attack on the president in terms of libya. i do not think that story has ended. even though the white house said there within their legal rights. guest: for me the biggest news was last week. i was trying to figure out what happened this week.

we were talking about h untsman. that was a big change to the republican schedule. it was pretty significant. host: the first caller is from baltimore. a democrat. caller: i'm calling because republicans never want to talk about how we got to where we got. they never talk about reagan. one trillion dollar deficit when he took office. it went up to $5.4 trillion. creating 21 million new jobs. let's talk about bush. record spending. doubling the deficit. i'm sure no one wants an republican in office for the new future. it will take quite awhile to get this country turned in the right direction.

guest: i think there is wide acknowledgement on all sides that it is going to take serious effort and work to bring the country back to where we wanted to be with a 9% unemployment rate. yet seen this administration work hard to attempt to pull that down, to the -- whether the agenda is one that most americans support is a test we will make in 2012. that will be the opportunity for republicans to say their alternative. host: west virginia on our republican mind. please go ahead. caller: did either one of your urbanization send someone to alaska to go through sarah palin's e-mails? to me, that is dumpster diving. why dig up dirt on a private

citizen that is not running for office? i do not understand this. as far as enthusiastic, i am enthusiastic about bachmann. she is an example we should aspire to. guest: we had a number of people looking into the trove of e- mails. this was a longstanding issue people had requested them. the day they came out, there was interest. sarah palin is a political force. she is a national figure. there is interest in her. what surprised a lot of people is the portrait that emerged focused on her as governor and her transformation from her time when she was governor and being looked at for the republican

vice-presidential nomination. then when she got it. given the amount of interest in sarah palin, the news organizations felt it was a reasonable thing for them to put a team of reporters on. host: was there anything you found interesting? guest: in terms of, the perception of how awful she was. a lot of the stories pointed out that the public persona of hers did not match with the person did not match with the person that emerged in the private e- mails. host: the next call is from chicago. caller: good morning. i was interested in why the numbers these people call in about taxes, you did not challenge them on where they got

the information. since you have someone from wall since you have someone from wall street journal, maybe they can shed some light on it. business insiders say the budget deficit is $27 billion. then we have conservatives say there deficit in taxes is $11 billion. tell me how they keep saying that texas has this great economy. please explain. host: i do not think our guests are prepared to look at those numbers. but i would ask you about rick perry. we got a lot of calls about that. his speech seemed to get a lot of attention. is he going to jump in the race? is he going to jump in the race? guest: his top aide worked for newt gingrich.

most folks who have been watching this develop assume that unless dave is around to a baez rick perry, he was unlikely to do it. now that he is back to be a free agent, harry, there are more doors open. there are more conversations. it is something that would shake up the field as we know it and would make a major change to the race. it is an open question. host: this tweet came in. guest: you have to remember the only one in the house. they do not control both branches of congress. it is much more difficult to pass final legislation when you

are only in control of one chamber. the question will be, are voters going to feel that that house of representatives has full responsibility for the agenda that goes through? if they want to turn around and punish them, then you will see lower gop seats in the house. opposition parties have been more successful when there is an incumbent president, because there is some discontent and energy on the oppositional side in an attempt to oust the president. you're less likely to see the congress switched back over to the democrats. host: our next call comes from westchester county, new york. caron, a republican. caller: this is partially statement and i wanted to make some recommendations.

what i have been observing and the interest of people calling in and mentioning the governor from texas, to make predictions would be very dangerous. if is interesting to see the people that have called attention -- is it rick perry in texas? my question would be the economy, and my perception would be that, and thinking that things can change dramatically within the span of 2008, when we had a serious recession, how can things turned around so quickly? i would be more lenient on obama to give him more of a chance,

because of the damage that had been done. but the new people that they are interested in, it makes people question. never underestimate, because obama was not the favorite initially. host: thank you very much. carol lee. guest: the interest and governor haley shows how influx that republicans are to a certain extent. -- the interests in governor pe rry shows how in flux the republicans are to a certain extent they are trying to sort out how to look to the past in terms of what the president had when he came into office, how

much he owes the economy, and they look to the future. some voters may give the president leeway. but that is the real question. most voters are not willing to. they want to look to the future. so there is at this struggle in the white house and the president how he should talk about the economy. they are really concerned about this. we had a poll that showed americans are the most pessimistic about the economy since july 2008, a real danger zone for the white house. host: on june 1, you reported that no american president since fdr has won a second term in president when the unemployment rate on election day topped 7.2%. guest: that's right.

they think it will not be 9%, somewhat lower to there, probably around 8%. host: most of their budgets have 9%. 9%. guest: there is a thinking and they will not say it now because they are not interested in the prediction business because their predictions were sell off when they pass the neck -- so off when they pass the stimulus bill. but that would still be higher than the rate was when fdr one. is there going to be enough to tell voters, things would be really bad if we did not take these steps? the unemployment is at 8% or whatever it does in november 2012, but it could be 10%.

we are headed in the right direction. the president talks about that all of the time. whether or not that is a sellable argument in the year is an open question. host: kasie hunt, how was the fund raising going on on the republican and democratic sides? guest: we have yet to see initial fund-raising reports from the republican candidates. the most noteworthy that we have seen so far, mitt romney raised more than $10 million in a single day in las vegas. that was clearly meant to lay down the marker. it said that i am clearly going to hold financial dominance, or at the very least, be it will raise more than or at least as much as every other person running. you have some folks that are capable of self funding.

mitt romney pour a lot of his own money into the campaign last time. jon huntsman is in the same position. when you see some raise less, like tim pawlenty? those officials will force will come out this summer. host: tim pawlenty did not have a great week, did he? guest: he did not. he finally came out after that debate in new hampshire and said i screwed up when i did not hammer mitt romney on health care. now he is trying to hammer him on obamneycare, as he says. several days before the debate, he referred to that in the public eye, when there were more voters watching. they made the calculation that that was a screw up. we will be looking to see if he continues to go after mitt romney on health care. host: the next call for kasie hunt and carol lee comes from

kenneth in greensboro, n.c., the independent line. caller: i was calling about the presidential politics. i had been thinking for a long time that is all it has ever been any way, a popularity contest. i cannot really think of a time in my lifetime since i have been voting, since bill clinton, even though [unintelligible] he was still a man that knew how to get things done in washington. and he did that. he had come from somewhere out of the midwest, some place i had never heard of him, but he turned out to be the best president within the last 20 years that i have seen, for the

economy, for the working man, and everything. but everyone constantly castigates him for his morality. most folk out there do not have any morality. i do not see how you can jump on one person and beat them down when they have been one of the most successful presidents in the history of this country. host: carol lee. guest: bill clinton is a figure who a lot of democrats see as one of the best presidents in the last 20 years. in terms of a popularity contest, to a certain extent, i think that can be true. but this election in these economic times will come down to that. host: kasie hunt. guest: i cannot help but think

about how this election could be this similar to the one where he first ran. at that time, we were coming out of a very successful military operation, desert storm, and there were many popular democrats urged to run who did not because they felt that they could not be the incumbent. everyone had to pin their hopes on this small town governor from arkansas to no one really knew. it turns out he has been one of the most popular presidents in the modern era. republicans are crossing their fingers that even though barack obama has been so strong, and popular republicans have decided not to run because they feel they might have a better shot in 2016 when the field is more open, who knows? we could see one of these guys step up and become a figure on that scale. host: carol lee, how will your job transition as we get closer to 2012? it is only six months away.

guest: it will be largely the same in some respects. the president will still travel on air force one and the presidential press pool will travel with him. it will not be like 2008. even now the places that egos are still 2012-focus. he is in florida, north carolina -- so it will be different in the sense that he will really hit the campaign trail and to campaign-specific events. almost everything that the president does is political to begin with. host: you are on with carol lee and kasie hunt. go-ahead, jeff. caller: thank you for c-span.

as far as rick perry is concerned, you might want to think long and hard before he makes a bid to run as president team made these comments about seceding from the united states, very treasonous talk. neo-confederate, almost racist overtones about the president. he needs to think long and hard before he makes a bid. as far as tim pawlenty, he had the opportunity to call out mitt romney, he has marginalized himself. newt gingrich, he told the truth about the rise in planning that castigated by his own party. after the 2010 elections, i think a lot of people are having buyer's remorse. we see that what thompson in ohio and new jersey, governors

are attacking unions, teachers, people of color, women's rights, and a lot of people are having buyer's remorse. the democrats do not need to rest on the laurels but they do not need to go into pending mode. sarah palin does not want to be in politics. host: we will leave it there. kasie hunt. guest: you mentioned tim pawlenty and i think that you have hit on something that has been an undertone in his candidacy for a while, whether he is aggressive enough. that is the murmurings that you hear from his opponents. it will be interesting to see whether he can step up and move past this or the statements he made this week continued to dog him throughout the campaign. host: of a " wall street journal" is carol lee's paper,

but we're going ask kasie hunt about it. the republican feelings about their party's field of candidates. dissatisfied, 45%. satisfied, 45%. compared to four years ago. compared to four years ago. what do those figures tell you? host: the reflect on something i hear every day in talking to people here in washington, this broader story about the upcoming election. but the republican establishment and republican voters do not know what to do with the current field of candidates. there are many that are unknown, for they have seen before and do not like, like mitt romney.

romney has a national profile that many of these others do not have yet. that has certainly put him in the position of front runner. but there is some soul-searching still going on as you can see with even the interest of your callers have. maybe people are looking for something different. host: carol lee, the current gallup poll, president obama's approval rating 45%. no president watches polls, we have been told by every president. how closely do they? guest: president's advisers guest: president's advisers watch polls and they did around polling. -- do their own polling. talking about how beatable the

president is, we have seen worse numbers for incumbent presidents, but it is certainly not for the white house would like him to be. the osama bin laden bounds that he got was so fleeting. it lasted just a couple of weeks. anyone who thought that voters would go to the polls a year from now with that in mind was mistaken. host: what about his white house communications adviser getting booed at the netroots conference? guest: i think it was not quite surprising, but the level, to see the moderator being intense that time. he was pressed on issues that those voters are going to care about in 2012. barack obama could not have won

the presidency without the support is. as that event showed, it will be a challenge when they are unhappy with his position on wars, on gay-rights, and other things. host: jim on the republican line. caller: i am celebrating father's day by having everyone sleep in the house. so much to talk about, but the biggest problems we have on the scene right now are not necessarily the republican field. it is the lack of intense scrutiny of the president. we do not really question the economic numbers that come out, or the press does not make any effort to explain the economic numbers. says obama has been in office, he has been taking so many people out of the labor force, that is rarely talked about in the mainstream press. they talk about sarah palin and whether it is unethical to

investigate her. we have seen an uncritical press here when it comes to obama. where are all the people who have known this guy all of his life? we have a total blank slate until he stepped into the united states senate. those of the biggest problems that we have come of a lack of explanation of what economic news means, and a critical analysis of who is this obama guy? host: a lot on the table. carol lee. guest: i like their respect -- respectfully disagree. i think the press corps does scrutinize and question the president and his policies. there was a very long campaign in 2008 where barack obama's background and policies as a state senator, united states senator, were deeply scrutinize. in terms of the economic numbers, there is a lot of

analysis going on right now as you saw what the numbers in may, or the unemployment rate picked up a bit. there is a confluence of factors that are playing into the economic situation that we have right now. guest: like carol was saying, the economic situation has been an intense focus of folks here in washington and of the press. it is a complicated subject that takes a lot of effort, time, and money to report in a very serious way. most of these organizations are making very serious attempts to break down those numbers and explain exactly what is going on. as we get further into this race, you will end up with a more intense discussion of the unemployment numbers, jobs, the economic situation because the republican candidates will be talking about a summit. they have decided that they will

have messages the center are around the economy and jobs. host: congress -- to you approve or disapprove of how congress is doing its job? this is a gallup poll. congress has a 17% approval rating. guest: interesting to see what they think of their own congressman. people tend to love the person that they have sent their but intensely dislike the institution. there is some warning in looking at this graphic that you have. it has dipped recently saw the republicans need to look out for that. guest: also about anthony weiner. host: about the troops in afghanistan. will this be an issue in 2012?

guest: i think we do not know yet. it is far out to know what the issues will be. but it will certainly be an issue. the president has the decision that he will make very soon, perhaps as early as this week, the drawdown that he promised when he's sent the 30,000 troops to afghanistan in december 2009. how the structures that, how that drawdown happens, what the situation is on the ground there a year from now, 16 months from now, a lot of people are looking to him as to what decision he makes in terms of the drawdown. there's a lot of intensifying pressure for the u.s. to pull pressure for the u.s. to pull out of afghanistan at the -- at

a much quicker rate. a large chunk of the u.s. mission there has been completed, so there will be intensifying pressure. host: john mccain did not think too much of withdrawal. guest: i think that what you heard from romney as a reflection that is going on in the broader couple and field. -- republican field. some candidates that did not run were talking along these lines. haley barbour who has been one of the party's top strategist was saying things along these lines back in march. "maybe this is not the right time for us to be throwing more and more troops in." maybe we should reduce our footprint, small number of

special operations forces th ere for border operations. you think that this will develop across the field. depending what obama decides to do, it could be a big issues if republicans decide to continue with the way that they have been trending, away from a stance in afghanistan. host: we will also have the budget talks going on, vice- president by then's with congress, after we take this call from des moines, a democrat. caller: i have to say that that those same that there's not enough press criticism of obama, i am a democrat. when i became a democrat, you had to be 21 to vote.

i just had my 81st birthday the other day. i see nothing wrong with a 18- year-old voting. they are old enough to die for this country, they are certainly old enough to vote. i have heard so much criticism of the president. my late husband had been a political analyst for a radio show for many years. but no one is talking about the praise the president received when obama was killed. excuse me, when bin laden was killed. he received a lot of praise for that. i had some reluctance last time. i had no reluctance. i will vote for him this time during my concern is that at my age, i'm very concerned about what is happening with medicare. that is hurting me a great deal. what do you think is going to

happen what the republicans and medicare? host: let's start with kasie hunt. guest: that is an important. bankers we just had a special election in new york and use all the democrats pull that out, and the credit for that on both sides was largely given to the democratic message on medicare. they came out and started bashing the paul ryan budget plan which would make significant changes to that program. is of them really turn the tide on that message. i think that democrats took away from that that that is a winning issue for them. republicans took notice and said, maybe this is not exactly where our message needs to be. especially when they are talking to seniors like you. guest: i think the democrats certainly thought that paul ryan gave them the big victory when he put out the republican budget, which showed deep cuts

to medicare. the white house has said that they are not going to consider changes to medicare, and you have seen the republicans concede that in the current budget discussions. they will not get what they want out of that. it was an interesting moment when the president brought that republicans over to the white house and he was challenged on the demagoguery that democrats had been engaging in, in congressman ryan's work, and he said that it was going both ways. host: "cq weekly" writes the republicans may be budging on taxes and democrats may be

budging on entitlements. guest: the budget talks have been interesting because members of congress and the members of the white house involved in these have taken up the pledge not to leave too much. but a little bit that we have been managed to pull out of that has shown that once was considered a joke in town, it has turned into the only thing in town in terms of that deficit reduction, and they are looking at all the things that you have mentioned. how significant of a plan they have come out with in the next couple of weeks remains to be seen. but all of those things are on the table in their talks. host: kasie hunt. guest: the budget discussions,

there have been so many attempts to rankle this decision. we had that deficit commission failed, and so from a political perspective, what comes out of this will be closely watched. it will come out as a republican alternative or something that is not paul ryan's budget plan. it becomes a litmus test for the republican presidential field. if you come out against paul ryan's plan, you are actually against a republican orthodoxy or your making remarks that are not helping our party, they say. that is something i'm going to be paying close attention to. host: this is "washington journal" our live call-in program. we're talking to washington- based reporters, kasie hunt and carol lee.

michelle from washington, on the independent line. caller: how does anybody in the government, expect anything to change if our own government continues to use the same fraud paper of like foreclosures? they never stop it and it continues. how was anything supposed to change if no one can get up brought out of the system? host: carol lee. guest: tackling waste and fraud is something that every president says he is going to do. barack obama included. in the last couple of weeks, they have renewed his call to try to go after waste and fraud in government. i think you mentioned

foreclosures. the housing industry, going back to the economy, the things that we have seen taking shape in the housing market has really added to some of the frustration and concern about the economic situation. it is creating some angst within the white house. we may wind up seeing some things down the road to do with that issue. host: on our republican line, go ahead. caller: i'll make that comment not a question. who would really want to be present right now? if you think about who is running and house delegate candidates are, i was just talking to my dad about that this morning. you have a war in three countries, the economy, the falling dollar, the unemployment, housing market, gas, the house and senate squabbling, ethical issues.

there is also criticism which is so severe these days. over the last decade of ups and downs, presidents are really under criticism. sarah palin it's on tv and you have newt gingrich saying that vacationing is not so bad. being president right now is not really that great of a deal. guest: you make a point that have been picked up on by many people had thought about running this time around and basically decided not to. mitch daniels would be one, the governor of indiana. he declined because his family was so uncomfortable with the idea of standing out under the scrutiny that you're talking about, putting the family in the glare of the spotlight and having absolutely picked apart as it is this days. and that is before you even get to where you start solving all

of these problems, which are a long list. guest: this is why we have elections. the best part of all that is that it is an even playing field. everyone's side has to play on the same turf for the economic situation is not different for any republican candidate or a democratic candidate. the scrutiny that they all go under is all the same. it is a test of the candidates just have to cover. host: does the president enjoyed campaigning? guest: he would say no. but when you watch him on -- with crowds that are very enthusiastic about him, and he feeds off of that energy, watching him and his 2010

campaign when he started off slow and once he was really hitting the ground, there was this energy and you could see him trying to reprise the magic that we saw in 2008. to the extent with his energy, yes, he enjoys that. host: kasie hunt, when it comes to the republicans, who seems to enjoy the campaign trail? guest: i have covered jon huntsman most in debt, although i covered mitt romney as well as some of the others. comfort to the's most noteworthy. most noteworthy. he is shaking hands, talking, chatting up at harley dealerships. mitt romney seems to wrap up a number of uncomfortable moments. he was in new hampshire for his

announcement, cracked some jokes that were of little bit high- raising. he does not spend a lot of time taking questions from the press, either. host: your access to mitt romney is limited? guest: one of the lessons they learned from the last campaign, they feel like he tried to answer every question period that ended up getting him into all sorts of rhetorical trouble. it was creating issues that did not necessarily exist. this time they had been much more controlled about when they make him available, how long he is available, whether or not he will take more than three questions, taking questions on issues that he is not there to specifically talk about. i am ensure to see now that he is officially announced if they open him up more and allow for all more free-wheeling discussion, or if they keep making sure that the circumstances are controlled. host: what is your frustration

level of that control? guest: 4 reporters, it is always frustrating when a candidate is not accessible. in primary campaigns, they are so free willing. because they are so long and you're so close to the candidate, you get to see what they are like before they go inside the bubble like when carol is covering the white house. access to them than is very controlled. when you are on the campaign trail in these early stages, you get a chance to watch them interact in a way that feels more authentic than before they have decided to be more official. the more relaxed, less frustrating for us. host: what is your relationship with the white house press office? do you depend on them? do you depend on them? guest: as anyone would.

i serve on the board of the white house correspondents board. we deal with them regularly and have discussions. it is interesting to talk about access. when the candidate becomes president, you look at the number of questions that he covers and the questions that he declines when it comes into office. he can be as simple as not taking questions since before the government shut down until he was in europe. he had a great press conference with the prime minister cameron. even after he had this great victory after killing of osama bin laden, he will do

individuals with individual news organizations more regularly. host: lancaster, pa., thank you for holding. caller: my question is on the deficit. i am going to be 62 years old and about six months. i plan on collecting my social security. i needed desperately. they keep wanting to raise the retirement age. every time there is a problem in washington, they want to raise the retirement age. how do you feel about the young adults and you think you'll ever see your social security? if they keep on raising the retirement age, you will not be around to collect it. they are hurting the people who work all of their lives. i worked 43 years, and then they say you have to work longer. is there going to be any protection for people nearing retirement so this does not happen to them?

host: let's see how far they will go with this question. carol lee, let's begin with you. guest: i have to say that is not something i think about on a regular basis. i am not planning accordingly. but social security in terms of deficit reduction, one thing the white house has said is that social security is not on the table in these deficit reduction talks. they would not support slashing social security benefits. what that means is an open question. none -- it could mean that they could be open to other things. but that this is something that they will deal with in the next coming years. guest: i personally am in the same boat as carol ann using

social security in the future. it is on the table and there are questions about the future of the program. for folks in their 20's 430's, what they will see down the line is an open question. social security is an important and significant chunk of the deficit. medicare is the main problem. it will cause the most headaches for us in the long run. you have seen both the political and practical focus on that. host: from twitter. is that going to be a consistent and constant thing by the democrats? guest: it will. we had the election in new york and it worked out pretty well. i do not think you will see them back off of that as long as they

think it is politically viable. host: from south carolina, you are on a the air. caller: good morning. i wonder how long you think this presidential primary will drag out? we are not even in november, but the south carolina primary is will happen around here in february. do you think after the south carolina primary that they will have the republican nominee figured out by then? or could stretch out to april? i think that is the latest date, a little after april, when the figure out who the nominee is going to be. i think only then will the contest truly start. host: we will get an answer from kasie hunt, but what is your enthusiasm? are you a big supporter of president obama?

caller: yes, although i think all democrats and republicans are critics. but considering their wreckage that was left for him to have to pick up, i know republicans do not want to go there. but we have wrecked the economy not as a country, but basically the government. tax cuts to the very rich, and i am all for tax cuts, but he had done a great job. he has a cool head and i think he is keeping his powder dry for when the nominee comes out. i do not think we will know until then. my question to you is basically when do they believe -- and i will make a prediction. the republican nominee will be there. guest: it is actually something that will make a big difference in the course of the campaign, how long it lasts. i think we're seeing the

candidates themselves prepare for the long haul their there is a lot of talk about florida, probably going to be right after the south carolina primary. it is a huge state so you need lots of money. one of mitt romney's primary arguments is that he actually has the money and organization to go the distance, so to speak. to take a primary campaign to florida and to michigan and the super tuesday states. if he needs to. can everyone else in the field compete with that? it is going to depend on how strong from the's main opponent turns out to be. if that person can run with him all the way through florida to michigan to super tuesday, you will see fit primary drag out. if tommy -- if romney can dominate, it will decide earlier.

host: it from the text iowa and new hampshire, it is it over? guest: i will not say that it is over, but it will go a long way. if he loses in new hampshire, he has some real problems. his campaign has staked everything there. there will be series of questions been about if he can go all the way. host: who is the white house planning on running against? guest: they are looking mostly at mitt romney and to a lesser extents with mitt romney. and also john husband. he was the president's ambassador to china. if he could survive the republican primary, they think he would be up formidable candidate. host: time for one more call from knoxville, tennessee. joan, you are on the air.

caller: 1 obama took office, the unemployment rise it was 7.6% and now is 9.1%. we were supposed to be out of the recession and march of last year. he is not growing the economy to get us out of the recession. he has done nothing but put us back into a deeper hole. i think that each and every one of our candidates running, they are much more knowledgeable than he was when he took office. and i thank you. guest: the point you make about the unemployment rate, i think you're going to see the white house make the argument that if we had not taken certain measures, things would be a lot

worse. that is what they will say about the stimulus, about some of the other economic package as they pushed through. whether or not that is something that voters can support is an open question. it is very difficult to imagine something that did not happen than to understand that you make less money or you are unemployed or that your house is worth less. whether democrats can successfully make that argument remains to be seen. you'll see the republicans take them to task for it. guest: the question that the white house argues that things were so bad when the president came and, worse than they realize, and things would be much worse if the president had not done the stimulus package and other things. what you see now, the way the white house explains some of the

dips, is the slowing the progress, that debt crisis in europe, and gas prices. gas prices have been a big drain on the economy produce start to see them come down a little bit come up but the white house wrings its hands daily on how to deal with gas prices, i can tell you. it is not something that they can control but it has a huge impact on the economy. host: what is the president's weak light coming up? guest: we have fun racing in advance of the june 30 deadline. he is going to the key state of pennsylvania. in afghanistan, everyone is looking to see the decision. there will be an announcement of some sort. host: he is having one dinner up

in manhattan will take a position on the gay marriage issue? guest: there will be a lot of pressure to do that. ask,mpression on "don't don't tell", but there is still set us -- dissatisfaction because that policy has not taken place on the ground. that is still in place and the repeal is not complete. but the next front is the gay marriage is you. i think you will take a lot of questions about that. host: kasie hunt, what is your week like? week like? guest: one candidate is announcing and florida where ronald reagan made his first speech of the general election. standing in front of the statue of liberty. if you look at those photos, it

helps you understand who reagan was and why he became the commander that he did huntsman is taking a leaf out of that book. he is doing a tour of early states. is going to new hampshire and in south carolina and florida. we will be with him for that. host: our republican activist glomming on? guest: he is still unknown. there is a lot of interest in had this guy is. they want to know more about him. the activist in the early states are still learning ilyas, figure it out. he has gone a good warm reception in south carolina. some people have been surprised about that because he is on more me anne romney people says that they can hurt you in the primary. this will be my first trip with him to florida this week. i'm interested to see how the

folks that he meets with their respond and whether or not he catches fire. host: kasie hunt and carol lee, thank you both for being on the "washington journal." this sunday morning as father state. coming up, we have two segments left in our program. we will talk about the airline industry a little later. up next, a look get ayman al- zawahiri, the new leader of al qaeda. ♪ ♪

♪ >> this weekend on american history tv, we will visit the nixon presidential library's new exhibit on watergate. special programs including archival video of his first watergate speech and katherine graham on a breaking watergate story. we would join the american history guides at the university of richmond as they talk about secession in the civil war. we will hear from duke university professor john david lewis on the american defeat of japan in 1945. get the complete schedule at c- span.org/history. at e-mailed to you by pressing the e-mail alert button. >> mr. president, thank you very much. i feel deeply honored to be nominated become the 20th

director of the central intelligence agency. >> learn more about david petreaus during his more than 50 appearances on line at the cisco video -- c-span video library. every c-span program since 1987, all searchable and free -- it is washington your way. >> the time ordered the world when i was growing up. >> arturo munoz -- andrew rossi tessellated the changing newspaper industry. >> i came into it without a grand sense of the solutions for traditional media. i came in with a desire to observe. >> he will talk about his new documentary tonight. >> "washington journal" continues. host: we are pleased to introduce you to arturo munoz,

with the rand corp., a senior political scientist there. for about 29 years he served as an analyst with the cia. he is here to talk about what bin laden's debt means for al qaeda -- death means for al qaeda and for terrorism against us a snapshot of whom ayman al- zawahiri is. guest: he is an egyptian medical doctor. no distinguished family and cairo. from an early age, he was attracted to radical causes. by all accounts, he was involved in the assassination of anwar sadat, jailed. there is a lot of reports that when he was in jail, he actually broke under questioning and did provide information on his colleagues. he really feels bad about that.

a racistcounts, he hasn' personality. he is not charismatic. he is good at propaganda. he puts out a lot of videos, to how the bill of ask jihadist -- puts out a lot of jihadist videos. i think that i will be worse off with him as leader. host: why? guest: he lacks leadership qualities, to summarize it. given that al qaeda is a network of affiliates, international, it bills itself as that, yes, it is important that different affiliate's have a certain sense of loyalty and respect for the leader. everything i have read suggest that there is that respect that

they had for bin laden, it is just not there with zawahiri. solidary cannot force people to do what he wants to -- zawahiri cannot force people to do what he wants. that is why it is important have that charisma, to have that leadership ability, so that the terrorists voluntarily will carry out their instructions. carry out their instructions. host: what was his relationship with bin laden? and if you like to participate in our program, we will put the numbers up on the screen. we're talking about al qaeda and ayman al-zawahiri, as well as the death of bin laden and the practical effect of that. practical effect of that. arturo munoz spent 29 years with the cia.

he is our guest. he is currently with the rand corp. to back to my question, what was his relationship with bin laden? guest: he was like a political mentor. bin laden recognized the experience that he had. when he fled egypt after his movement failed there, and came to afghanistan, then he linked up with al qaeda there. i think that bin laden was attracted to his intellect, actually, and to his experience and his background. but it was not that one was subservient to the other. they're like allies. i would describe them as allies. host: i want to go back to his background. prominent doctor, who were his parents? were they westernized?

were they radicalized as well? guest: not at all, at they were not radicalized at all. he did not come from about islamic background. -- a devout islamic background. if you wanted to choose, i would say they were more secular. i read accounts of zawahiri's childhood. he grew up in an integrated neighborhood where you actually had people of other faiths. it was a middle-class, professional background. by all accounts, he decided to pursue the islamic radical route. for his own psychological and intellectual reasons, they attracted him, but i do not think he was a product of that background, not at all. host: what was his involvement

assassination in 1981? guest: my understanding is that he was not directly involved, but he was in a group that was associated with those that did the assassination. he had a peripheral involvement. he belonged to the group that did it. host: i also understand me and tell me if this is correct, it has been reported that his wife and two kids were killed in a raid in afghanistan. is that correct? guest: i have read that. i cannot confirm that. he has more than one wife. he married a troubled woman of- tribal -- tribal woman to forge closer links with the people in that area. perhaps it was hurt.

but i really cannot confirm the report. yes, i read it. host: the final question before go to calls. because he has now taken over, there are reports that there will be a terrorist attack attempts in the near future to solidify his leadership. guest: i would not say that because he has taken over, there would be a terrorist attack. there could be a terrorist attack even if he did not take over, even if he did not exist. hawkeye has to retaliate. hawkeye has to retaliate. whoever replace bin laden, -- al qaeda has to retaliate. whoever replaces bin laden will be under pressure to retaliate. this is not just zawahiri. host: arturo munoz, 29 years

with the cia, is our guest. we're talking about ayman al- zawahiri, the new leader of al qaeda. kansas, you are our first question. caller: i may be wrong, but this guy sounds like he is sympathetic to al qaeda, because he is not too strong a leader. we want us to but later he does not know how run anything. -- a stupid leader that does not know how to run anything. can you please correct that? guest: it is not that i'm favoring the organization. it is just an analytic comment. all the evidence indicates that zawahiri is not a carrot to madman or an effective leader. from our point of view, as we face him and his organization as an enemy, we are better off with leadership that is not as competent as it could be.

we would be worse off if the enemy had better leadership. host: portland, ore., a republican. caller: we heard in libya that part of the libyan rebels are al qaeda. our politicians have said we'd do not know who is running for rebels in libya. also i would like from your laden didn't osama bin worked for the cia in the early 1980's and the early afghanistan episode? when did he make the transition from working for the cia to being our enemy? >> i have seen no evidence that osama bin laden worked directly for the cia. he was there at the time that there was a covert action

program in the soviet occupation. as far as i know, there was never any collaboration between bin laden and the cia even though both were working toward the same objective. that does not mean they were doing it together. the other question was the extent of the al-qaeda presence with the libyan rebels. there has been some reporting to that effect but that does not necessarily mean that al qaeda controls elements of the libyan opposition or is directing the libyan opposition or even is playing a significant role. i would assume that they are present because they are present in most places in the middle east. to go from scattered unconfirmed reported to say that their present to suggest they are playing some kind of leadership role in the libyan opposition i

think is on call for given the nature of the evidence available. host: do we know which area a ayman al-zawahiri is in? guest: right now? i think most analysts would say he was in pakistan. we really don't know. it is just like we did not know where a summer was four years. -- where osama bin laden was four years. i assume he is probably in pakistan. host: raleigh, n.c., you are on, we are talking about a ayman al- zawahiri and osama bin laden. caller: i am a little confused as the early caller was the fact that this gentleman tells us how incompetent and incapable this potential leader of the el al- qaeda is and yet on the other hand, if the organization is

aware of that incompetents, why don't they rise to the threat level that apparently the rand corporation and the cia think that it is it? i understand the contradiction. guest: i have been stressing what i consider his lack of leadership ability but i would say -- but i would not say he has no leadership abilities. we don't have to go for one extreme to the other. i am not suggesting that he is completely incompetent. i am suggesting that he is not as charismatic leader as osama bin laden. everybody pretty much agrees with that. why did al qaeda picked him as the leader? an important reason is because he has a presence. he is well known. he has been in charge of the jihad is movement for years.

for my propaganda perspective, from a psychological operations perspective, it makes sense to as the new leader and to present continuity and the organization. operationally, the way things are going in al-qaeda, the network of affiliates will do what they want. it will plan their own operations individually. i think it is useful to have a figurehead. i think a ayman al-zawahiri may be useful. host: here is a tweet -- guest: [laughter] that is a good question. they communicate in a clandestine way. it is not an election of all

members of al qaeda. these are the leaders of al- qaeda, a select few leaders. nobody should get the idea that there were some kind of general election and people voted. no, this was the leader is communicating in a clandestine way expressing their preference. host: have we been able to track al-qaeda email? guest: they are very aware of their abilities. we talk about our abilities so much in public that they are quite aware of what we can do technically. they actually take a lot of countermeasures to avoid detection from our well- publicized abilities. take the case of osama bin laden and his compound in and bought a bike, he relied on couriers. he relied on human individuals carrying messages. it is almost like the old days

where you would send carrier pigeons. now he is sending people. they cannot be intercepted and electronically. host: or you surprised when osama bin laden was caught? were you surprised at the location? abbotobad,, because there is a military academy there. it is not in the wild frontier. it is a town that is firmly under the control of the pakistani government. i was surprised that he would be in such a safe accessible place as opposed to where we thought he was on some remote mountain hideout. host: lexington, kentucky, and our republican line, go ahead.

caller: i was really disturbed about the fact that osama bin laden was caught in pakistan because they are supposed to be our ally. what kind of penalties would they be facing? host: who? caller: pakistan. the role of pakistan as an ally. are they an ally of the u.s.? guest: they are an ally and they have their own interests. our relationship is more strained than ever. we have complaints about their performance in the war on terror. the most obvious one is osama bin laden sitting there for years. why did they not tell us? it is kind of incredible to

assume that nobody knew of it in the pakistani government or the intelligence service. we rightfully complained that they are not collaborating. but they also have grievances against us. it is a troubled relationship on both sides. their biggest grievance, ironically, is not that we are there on the border and we are intervening. their biggest grievances we are planning to leave and after we have the big program against the soviets in which they played a key part, we left. key part, we left. there is that's in that movie whenarlie wilson's war," you want to get congress to fund schools and refugees in afghanistan we did nothing to help repatriate those people. we left that pakistan is holding

the bag. they fear that with our pending withdrawal in 2014, what ever date it will be, we have announced we are withdrawing. they will be left holding the bag again and have announced it. they are trying to hedge their bets. we are leaving and they are staying and the islamic radicals are state. in their minds, it is more prudent to make some deals with these islamic radicals to get ready. there are other grievances. there is the sale of the f-16 jets. you can go back and forth on mutual grievances of this relationship. yes, they are our allies and do cooperate with us. i'm not saying we will be worse off would we did not have their operation however, limited that

maybe. "the here's an article in washington post" in an al zoroya furey's speech have been greeted by a collective yawn in the middle east. guest: kind of corporate what i have been saying. i am glad he agrees with my view. what is the question? host: despite all these drawbacks and the serious institutional problems he inherits, there is some opportunities for him to resuscitate al-qaeda.

as the arabs printer that will long, hot, and violent summer, a ayman al-zawahiri will try to exploit the chaos to achieve the central goal of establishing a new haven for al-qaeda. he says he could have success in yemen. guest: sure, they already have limited success in yemen. they're taking advantage of the chaos there. they may ultimately have success in syria because the syrian people are rising up against the tyrannical government and nobody in the world is helping them. it is the exact opposite of libya. but there is the moslem brotherhood there. they have always said this is the organized opposition, the bogeyman, the islamic mother -- brotherhood. there is some truth to that. that is absolutely true.

al qaeda is not down and out by any means. they have some opportunities. there is a lot of instability and chaos which favors them. host: next call for our guest, fort lauderdale, republican. caller: do you think that will be drawn into helping syria? guest: i don't think we will intervene in syria because the united states is now involved in three interventions in the middle east. we are still in iraq. we have a huge campaign in afghanistan. we are in libya. for us to intervene in syria, i don't think the american don't think the american that orwould stand for congress. i don't see any political support for intervention in syria. furthermore, intervening in syria will be more difficult.

the syrians are much better organized and they don't have a coastline like libya has which facilitates intervention. the syrians also receive help from iran. it we're going to take on syria, we will also have taken on iran. syria more and more is acting like an iranian surrogate. given all the difficulties of intervening in syria and the lack of political support, i do not see that feasible. host:dr. munoz has a ph.d. from stanford university and spent 12 years with the cia. both have jobs to to have at the cia? >> i started out as an analyst. then i got frustrated with it

and want to be an operations officer. so then i switched to directorates and i joined the do. i spent four years in the d.i,. director of intelligence, and about 25 years, i have been the director of operations back on what kind of work did you do? host: can you tell us? guest: i have been officially approved or resume. when you retire over, you can say you're at the cia only if you have any progress the night. i can say it was a case of a cert. it was -- it is my resume. spot, develop, recruit foreign

assets are your intelligence providers. i did covert action programs in latin america, the middle east, and north africa. host: graham, n.c., a democrat. are you with us? we have to turn down the volume on our tv otherwise we get that feedback. stamford, conn., independent line. caller: thank you. i have a question for your guest. guest. if you have to force the islamic reverses the indian threat of the other, but those into one other%, would it be 50/60? what can the united states do with india in this issue to try to build a stronger relationship with pakistan?

guest: i don't think that the pakistanis see the threat as 50/50. i think they see their biggest threat as india. the islamic radicals are lesser threat because they have historically believed they can manipulate the islamic radicals. that is what they have been doing for years. to a certain degree, it has blown up in their faces because the islamic radicals are targeting the pakistani military and even the pakistani intelligence services. some allies ask what kind of allies these are. they have suffered a lot. of casualties. the military and other

organizations, from terrorist attacks. recently, they did an attack on a naval base and they killed a large number of naval personnel, pakistan the neighbor -- naval personnel. many said mussharraff was double dealing and you could make that argument that they tried to kill him twice. the islamic radicals also the islamic radicals also constitute a threat for pakistani society and the pakistani government. i think there is a growing realization of that within pakistan. the bottom line is, i still think they see in the as the biggest threat. host: jeffersonville, indiana, are democrats line.

caller: [inaudible] there are many of us who believe -- [inaudible] [unintelligible] there will always be people who want to hurt every in every every country in the world. the biggest problem we have that we cannot do anything about any more, that is serious or truly destroying communities and people. these guys a large sum of more import ban afghanistan can be. we have to stop killing america. ofs like you're making money scaring people. guest: ok, the question is [laughter] that the threat in afghanistan

has been exaggerated. that is actually a matter of congressional debate right now. by the way, the analysts to debate this fiercely among themselves about our objective. is our objective to stop the taliban? some say the main reason we're in afghanistan as to to stop al qaeda. al qaeda is there and they play a role. al qaeda is not the taliban. there is an insurgency going on that is independent of al-qaeda. they have adopted some of the al-qaeda tactics like suicide bombings, the use of ied's so you can see the influence of al- qaeda but you cannot say that al-qaeda is controlling that insurgency. this is really a home run native pashtoon gueilla insurgency that

operates independently. is it in our national interest to fight these posturing guerrillas in afghanistan? there is debate on that. and people -- some people would say no. i would argue that there is a geopolitical dimension to this. if the allies -- if a lamb -- if is lot radicals took over large part of afghanistan and the taliban control the south and east, i think that will be destabilizing. that will impact negatively on pakistan. there is other regional players. there is other regional players. other regional players will fill that vacuum like iran or some other players out there. you may actually see more

instability and more of a threat coming from that area as a result of lost -- a very precipitous withdrawal. if we stayed there and follow the strategy that has been articulated. >>arturo munoz of the rand corporation, 29 years in the cia and thank you for being on "washington journal." we have 40 minutes left and we will turn our attention to the airlines and summer travel and the fees that they charge. etc. after this news update. >> beginning at noon eastern on cspan radio, you can hear pipe network tv talk programs re- aired. topics include presidential politics, the war in afghanistan, and the defense department budget. we begin at noon would meet the press.

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>> i came into it without a grand sense of what the solutions are for traditional media. i came in with a desire to >> observe> he will talk about his new documentary tonight on c- span and "q &a." continues. heimlichhost:john i'm li is with us to talk about the airline industry. the summer season -- the summer travel season has started, if you would, could you tell us with the air transport association is? guest: we represent u.s. passenger and cargo airlines that i've been around since 1936. we are the voice of the industry in washington. host: how would you describe the economic health of the american

airline industry? guest: i would describe it as climbing out of a people with some temporary signs of progress. last year was one where year of profitability in a decade where we lost $55 billion. >> why did they make money last year. ? guest: we had relief on fuel guest: we had relief on fuel costs and there was restructuring efforts in benefited from a strong rebound in the international markets. host: the airlines charged $5.75 billion in fees two passengers last year, is that correct? guest: that's correct, for reservation changes and baggage. host: you probably realize that is not a popular thing for the airlines to do. are they here to stay. g?

guest: the separation that the airlines provide one way or another will stay. the wifi and other things, you will continue to see evolution. separate the fare from other service providers, i see a fundamental transportation under way across the world. host: did those fees make the airline's profitable? guest: there is no doubt that was a huge part of the airline leaking out 82% profit margin in 2010 and part of their ability to cope with higher costs this year. host: if an airline ticket costs $500, how does that break down? who gets what and how much goes to taxes and fees? guest: you typically would have somewhere between 15 and 25%

taxes. the average systemwide round- trip baggage charges about $13 per round trip. a bank is half that for a reservation change feet. not everyone checks a bag. not everyone checked two bags. many people by fully refundable tickets the idea is to make it fares to one customer is not forced to subsidize another major the airline is not incurring costs without realizing revenues. host: have airline fees got up in the last two years? i mean airline ticket costs. guest: the base air fare has got up. i believe it was comparable in '08. 2000 and was a terrible recession and they remained deflated. host: how much of that is due

to lessening capacity by the airlines. let's get our viewers involved in this conversation. our fourth line is from airline employees --202-737-2579 if your an airline employee and would like to call in and talk to mr. heimlich. you can also send a state tweet bad twitter dot com/cspanwj. do you remember my question? guest: yes, in 2008 and 2009, the have a 1-2 punch of the fuel

price surge, cruel and whatnot, followed by the worst global recession since the 1930's force the airlines to reduce capacity tremendously not in the interest of our customers. we could not sustain routes. we give up a lot of employees but not by any number plans and pull routes out of the sky. the goal is now that we are in a position where increased demand are outpacing supply. that is the only way to sustain our service for customers. we cannot do that if we are charging tariffs and fees below our cost of operation. we can now at least make a 2% profit and we can buy bigger planes and improve the workshop. host: do you foresee mark these coming from the airlines?

♪ guest: it's possible. different airlines are experimenting. we have seen more exemptions on some routes. i see more separation of the cost. i see a lot of sifi which they could charge for. it was half on someone's fleet and now they're getting it to be higher. whether rates for baggage he's changed the number of baggage changes, i cannot say for certain. i see it as a permanent thing. the person who just wants to move him or herself can't they just a fair to move him more herself and not paper bag to be doesn't want to. host: as the consolidation of the airline industry lead to higher costs -- higher prices for consumers? guest: i don't think so. i'd think it is led to the

preservation for air services for customers. i think you would have seen more routes, especially with the fuel price this year than you would have otherwise. but agreed to compared to what would have happened. i think this is allowed airlines to stay profitable. if we went back three years, we would be cutting. host: the numbers are back up on your screen and we have reserved the fourth line for airline employees. we will begin with grace from graham, north carolina. good morning. caller: hi, i have a comment. i think the airlines are doing fine even though their fees are higher. i know obama will bring us through and lower those fees in due time. obama is the man for president. host: do you foresee that

congress or the present in a political year getting involved in a popular position of saying no more airline baggage fees? guest: i don't think so. i understand where that could be popular but congress realizes that the worst consequence for consumers is to have the airlines cut route to pick on make money. it recognizes that and the end of the day, low-fare carriers perrone and low fares have grown as a function of deregulation. is a three this market industry and i think congress is willing to keep it that way. host: next call is a san diego. caller: good morning, thank you. my fiance works for airport terminal services. i can say that with authority,

are fair for what he does for his job. host: why do you say that? guest: he works like every person in this country who has a job and wants to keep it. thank you. host: how many people are employed by the airlines? ♪ guest: passenger airlines around 382,000 and cargo airlines is probably another hundred and 50,000. are you -- are u.s.-based airline said a disadvantage and more with regard to foreign carriers? the use to be a lot of flag carriers that they have gone by the wayside. guest: largely, the u.s. is catching up. the airlines do extremely well on costs within their control. one disadvantage is with high fuel prices, fuel is bought and

sold in dollars around the world. the u.s. has a weak currency. using other currencies to buy fuel is a cost advantage. some countries have different tax rates and others. the u.s. airlines are increasingly getting into international markets and are catching up nicely. can we afford to keep our fleet new? we can only buy new airplanes to beat the competition if we are making money. caller: new york city go ahead. what about when people aboard those planes with those roller bags versus the time they wait in the baggage area and the money you make. can you talk about that? guest: i not sure i have seen a

steady but what we know is that checked baggage requires the airlines to pay for real estate at the airport. , manpower to process the bags and it forces folks who want to wait at line at the ticket counter to wait longer. there's a fuel penalty. there are a lot of costs us as it with processing checked baggage. you are right that it is not a zero to handle carry-on bags. on net, given that there is a limitation on the number of carry-on bags in part due to tsa, it balances out in favor of the current model. host: how much less baggage is being checked since the imposition of the fees? >> that is a great question and

the department of transportation has never collected statistics before a number of checked bags. they will start introducing a rule to do so. to take effect in 2012 very we cannot study that rigorously. anecdotally, we know that many passengers have changed their behavior. they might be checking for your bag so it is have become a fact. why do you think it is that every couple of months there is a story about anchor issues on an airplane? host: the business model was not working. it was not working for the airlines, it was now working for customers. we had to not buy new airplanes. this is a transition time. transitions are not good.

we don't go to a hotel and expect a free bottle of water. we don't expect free hbo from the cable company. if the airlines did this 30 years ago then people would have viewed it as a norm. now it is the transition and it is something for people to get used to. it is a very visceral experience because we have all these safety and security restrictions for good reasons so if you are upset and you walk into a more rigid wal-mart and you are upset, you can walk off the store. you cannot walk off an airplane. 202-7372579 host: if you are an airline employee. alexandria, va. go ahead. caller: happy father's day to all the fathers out there. does your guest of the input of

what the discussion is with the air traffic controllers and switching their schedules are around? number two, reagan national airport was very busy so if you're going to increase capacity, you have to lean toward larger planes that would carry more people. what you think about that? guest: the former is really not my area of expertise. that is a function of the federal aviation administration to determine the rights staffing and rest provisions for their controllers. i can say that we have a very safe system and we are proud of it and we have every confidence that the administrator will follow this. the latter question was about reagan airport and there is a debate on its way in congress in the reauthorization bill.

whether to allow airlines for not currently allowed to fly nonstop to the west coast, if you see flights to the west coast, more of those allowed, you will see slightly larger airplanes. host: detroit on the caller: independent: good morning. and as an industry observer, failure of deregulation -- i would ask that you speak to how deregulation and how the industry might benefit from re- regulation. guest: neither the industry or anybody would or th benefit from a new regulations. every academic came out last year in a very strong bipartisan majority in congress and they

see destroyed it -- deregulation as anti-success. the u.s. government continues to pursue an open policy, de- regulating abroad. the average fare has come down about 45% since the regulations and there's tremendous growth of air service to communities small and large across the country. host: could you explain the role or the smaller airports legislation that brings planes into underserved areas? some of it is purely market driven where airlines can profitably sustain service with smaller aircraft. sometimes that is insufficient and there is something called the essential air program which

grants some funds for small regional airlines to supplement service communities that otherwise would not be sustainable. this may be in alaska or the rural midwest or other places but it is a topic being deliberated in the current faa bill as to whether some of that program really does date back to the late 1970's and if it needs to be refreshed. do i need non-stop service directly from a smaller airport if i can drive 30, 60 miles to a larger airport and go anywhere in the world? that is the core question being debated. host: next call comes from austin, texas. caller: thank you for taking my call. being a customer, i noticed in the past year that we have seen an increase in pricing.

my family has decided to drive this past year because of increasing prices. i know because of inflation and competition that the price will always raise. do you see a cap and pricing. -- a cap in pricing? the pricing was sold available for us. do you foresee a continuing increase in price to where it will be an issue with price index guest: i definitely do not see a government-imposed cap. the government imposed cap pleas to a government restriction of supply. withw that in the 1970's restriction on oil. they will simply produce less. the market may impose a cap in the sense that people would

stop lying at some price point like when oil got to $147 per the world economy choked. the issue now is that this recovery is generally being led by the business traveler who once again is booking in the first-class cabin, the business cavan, something we did not see in 2009. the airlinescosts, can afford to carry any customer at any price of a tend to favor the business traveler. if the economy saul's itself and i think you'll see prices softened, until then, the airlines lost $1 billion in the first quarter. host: albany, new york. caller: i work for jeff lew. jet blue.

caller: what are your views on organized labor, specifically in regard to flight operations, pilot union's dealing with management post-deregulation? do you feel that organized labor is helpful, a hindrance or pretty much neutral? have an guess i don't opinion either way. i feel management and labour benefit when we have a profitable industry. we can buy new airplanes and extend the job levels which is the most important thing. i take no view on whether they are unionized or non-unionized. there is not a sarah lee to elect correlation between union involvement in the success of the country. i am totally agnostic on the mall. i feel passionate that both

management employees are better off if we are getting enough to cover our costs. los angeles, good morning. caller: adjusted for inflation, it appears the airlines are richer today than they were in 1981. are there government subsidies involved? guest: there are definite no subsidies involved. i would have to see your analysis but everything we see from gao or brookings or berkeley or our own analysis, and mighty suggests the rates are half what they were for inflation. in 1979, that was around $559 in today's money. in 2010 according to the department of transportation that was slightly higher. host: here is another tweet --

is this an american subsidiary of richard branson's american company? guest: the rule is that the department of transportation, actually congress, federal actually congress, federal limits the voting equity to 25% in a u.s. company with former ownership. that is something debated about. some of the virgin american competitors did protests and appealed the department transportation because they suspected that the foreign ownership of version exceed that threshold. the department of transportation ruled that it did not. it seems to be a u.s.-managed it seems to be a u.s.-managed to, u.s.- host: can you address another tweet tax ? guest: i am not aware that

? southwest is in desperate they are a publicly held company and the trade nyse-listed the stock has done very well and many employees have stock in the company but is not an employee of the company. host: why has southwest consistently made money while other airlines have gone bankrupt or cannot of bankruptcy? guest: southwest has had a great model cents the early 1970's. they benefited in large respect to being relatively small at the time of deregulation and lent their growth and their labor contracts and their role model very early on to the performance of the company and stayed relatively consistent. at the time, they stood out as the only one with that model.

today, it is more challenging because they penetrated just about every u.s. market. with low fares. we saw them acquire air tran earlier this year and will be a default -- they will be diversifying their fleet to compete in international markets. constant adaptation and restructuring is not unique to one airline or another. host: john is an airline employee in manassas, virginia, good morning. caller: 0 kind of work you do? caller: i work on aircraft. host: what is your question or comment?

caller: i was wondering how he feels about having the nsa take care of other people's contracts? host: what is that? caller: the national mediation board. they can sell layperson's contract late aircraft merger. you can go into a denomination or --. host: can you help us? guest: i essentially understand the question how the board as got more involved in some airline labor management. my expertise says the court economics of the industry and supply and demand fundamentals and i know that ata.org has listed a statement on the issue and you can take a look there.

host: could you tell us what he was referencing? guest: with some of our member airlines, there was a question about how involved management was in both of certain labor groups to unionize or not. caller: host: are you talking about the delta merger? guest: that's one of them. host: the vote did not go through? guest: that is true with the flight attendants. caller: good morning. when you go emergency to the hospital and you cannot fly, you have to pay the penalty to get the flight as gillette's i do not yet you had the energy. if the goal is to make money,

sometimes you cannot have a refill -- what can we do from a customers to set up the bottles? guest: one issue is many people who travel pay the extra at $10 or $15 for travel insurance if they bought a non =-refundable tickets. my parents recently did that. the second one is that these customers often, that the airline. the airline will be accommodate the passenger without the extra charge. i think that is handled on individual airline basis, case by case. it is a discussion for the customer to have direct with the company. host: what is the cost to an

airline of somebody making a reservation two months in advance for a vacation, finding some thing that will happen and need to change their reservation for still one month out. what is the cost scenario? what is the airlines charge $100 change fee for that? storable don't have a stockpiled products like cars this about a lot. if someone decides not to buy, someone can buy it at the same price the next day. we are trying to make sure that we take care of the traveler. they are willing to hold reservations for two days a week could not give the customer the availability because joe or mary smith bought a much steeper -- cheaper ticket with no red --

strings attached. people are willing to pay for fully refundable tickets for the right to change. it is the perishable products that we cannot resell at once it is gone. host: corpus christi, texas, you are on the line with john heimlic, caller: i called to explain why millions of passengers -- host: ago ahead. caller: millions of passengers are going to southwest. last april, my mom was about to die. i bought a ticket the day before i got on the plane she died. i got there of 5:00 in the morning, it was american airlines. fisa -- at 5:00 the fix the ply but said they could not go because my connection in houston was already gone. had to go back, and come back

the next day. when i got home, i told them that my mom is that i needed to go back early. they charged me another to lead a dollars. i said you blow me because you made me, dan a come down here. guest: i cannot comment on that this of the situation. i think you are confirming the point that the industry is making is that we do have a choice. you made a choice and therefore the market works. in the and, the fact that you're satisfied with your choice of carriers most important. host: john heimlich is with the air transport association. how does the summer season look for your industry? guest: the summer looks pretty

good for the airlines. fortunately, the international market and the domestic business market are holding up pretty well. ata expects a slight bump up this summer in a number of passengers. notwithstanding, the high energy prices which takes money out of the public's pocket. host: thank you for being with us this morning. two more zero "washington journal on," bill kristol will be here to talk about politics and we'll talk about the gay and lesbian victory fund and we will talk about the drive to elect openly gay officials and finally we will talk about some of the agriculture spending including food aid, food stamps and what is happening in the house. thank you for being with us. happy father's day.

enjoy the rest of your sunday. ♪. ♪. ♪ >> this morning on c-span, newsmakers is live with philadelphia mayor michael nutter, a democrat and republican oklahoma city governor on the conference of governors meeting this week. after that, a house hearing on a gun smuggling sting operation that later, defense secretary gates at a senate hearing on the president's 2012 budget request. >> the c-span coverage of the

national cable telecommunications association's 2011 cable show continues today at 5:15 p.m. eastern. the fcc chairman julia's jan schakowsky is interviewed by the former sec chairman michael palle who has thencta. at 6:30, a look ahead to next year's presidential election with a former obama presidential adviser and a former republican chairman ed gillespie her >> the times ordered the world when i was growing up. >> page one producer and director andrew ross it looks of the changing newspaper industry and looks at " the new york times"through the eyes of the staff. >> i came into it without a grand sense of what the solutions are for traditional. media i came in with a desire really to just observe. >> he will talk about his new documentary tonight on cspan's

"q &a." >> "newsmakers" is coming up a lot. we will get a local perspective on how cities have been managing their budget in the current economy. there were in baltimore this weekend attending conference of mayors. here are some brief comments speaking at the meeting's opening news conference on friday. >> thank you and let me just say that i want to welcome all of our mayors who are here today. whether we come from the cities of new york, chicago, l.a., together, the metro economies of those three cities are larger than the 36 smallest states when you look at their economies. when you look at the fact that

all of us, no matter whether we come from a large city, a middle sized city, or a smaller city come all this represents the 89% of the economic output of the nation. as the city's ago, so goes the nation. when the mayors come together as we are here, a stone's throw away from thebeltway, we hope they are listening to the fact that it teetering on the brink of default is the wrong way to go. it is time to invest in america's workers and america's economy. that is where you'll get the best bang for the box. at a time when they are talking about it eviscerating the safety net, cutting medicate, eliminating work force training, the mayors of these cities are saying that this is the time to be investing and retooling our be investing and retooling our